Biography

B.M., Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory of Music, summa cum laudeM.M., Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University

Claire Allen is a performing violinist and violin teacher in the Washington, DC area. She is in the first violin section of the Tysons-McLean Orchestra and is a founding member of the Lorien Quartet, the faculty quartet of George Mason University’s Community Arts Academy. Highlights from the 2017-2018 season include solo recitals with David Norfrey, recitals with the Lorien Quartet, and performances with the Tysons-McLean Orchestra. Previous solo recital experiences include performances at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017.

The newly formed Lorien String Quartet, of which Claire is a founding member, is comprised of Teaching Artist faculty from Mason Community Arts Academy and has several recital performances in 2018. The quartet is engaged in active community outreach and also coaches young chamber musicians at the Academy. Prior to playing with the Lorien Quartet, Claire was a member of the Friedhelm String Quartet, based in Baltimore at the Peabody Conservatory. As part of the Friedheim Quartet, Claire performed in frequent recitals at the Peabody Conservatory and in the Baltimore Area, collaborated with composer Nathan Ball on the composition of a new string quartet, and worked with the Takacs Quartet, the Jupiter Quartet, the Ying Quartet, and the Arianna Quartet in masterclasses.

As an orchestral player, Claire has been in the first violin section of the Tysons-Mclean Orchestra since 2015 and is a free-lancer in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. She played in the Peabody Symphony Orchestra and the Peabody Opera Orchestra from 2011- 2013. Claire also served as concertmaster of the Baldwin-Wallace Symphony Orchestra and Opera Orchestra from 2009-2010.

Claire joined the Teaching Artist faculty of Mason Community Arts Academy in 2013. In addition to nurturing a studio of young violinists ages 4 to 18, she also serves as the Faculty Coordinator and the Chamber Ensemble Coordinator. She developed the curriculum for the popular Violin Beginnings and Violin Adventures classes and is a co-director of Summer Violin Bootcamp. In the summer of 2018, she served as guest faculty at Peabody Preparatory’s Allegro Strings Camp. Recent student successes include five prize winners in the Mason Arts Academy Music Competition, superior ratings in the Solo & Ensemble festival, and successful auditions for the Northern Virginia Senior Regional Orchestra, Virginia District XII Senior Honor Orchestra, the American Youth Debut Orchestra and the American Youth String Ensemble.

In addition to performing and teaching, Claire is a frequent contributor to the newsletter of the Virginia chapter of the American String Teachers Association, the Mason Community Arts Academy blog, and her own blog. Many of her articles have been featured on Violinist.com.

Claire holds a Master of Music degree from Peabody Conservatory and a Bachelor of Music degree, summa cum laude, from Baldwin-Wallace College. Her primary teachers include Rebecca Henry, Keng-Yuen Tseng, Burton Kaplan, Julian Ross, and Lisa Cridge. She performs on a modern violin made by Tetsuo Matsuda.

Students interested in studying with Claire can go to the Teaching page of this website.